-Throwing water after a departing car to herald the speedy return of those leaving

-Flowers sent to someone on their first day of work by colleagues and friends

-Colleagues bringing chocolates to work to share for celebrating purchase of new house, new car, new baby...

-(name some others)

--First-grade students buying everyone chocolate when they start to read

- The one that comes to mind is the slaughtering of an animal to bring luck or break a bad spell.

- Children throwing themselves onto Wedding Cars in an attempt to stop the car and get money from the bride and groom
- Very Nervous animals being carried around town in pickups, prior to the start of the Kurban bayram

- salt burning to remove the 'evil eye' (jealousy or ill-will directed at one)

-lead pouring (for same reason)

-writing names of unmarried girls on the bottom of the bride's shoe. whoever's name is rubbed off by end of night is next to get married

-taking a piece of silver strand from bride's bouquet will bring luck in finding a husband (but I don't see as many bouquets with silver strnads like in the 'old days' 10 years ago

bride stamping on the grooms feet after the vows have been completed.

I did that!!!

Maybe that's because she'd just realised what a mistake she'd made.

Kissing unshaven, hairy arsed growers in the middle of a muddy field and then being taken to their house for a lovely meal.

simonb- it's supposed to be something like the first one to step on the other one's foot will be the one with the 'control' in the marriage...so it might well be the man stepping on the woman's foot. the polite newlyweds often refuse to do that to each other.

what tradition is this??

- Taking the remains of the babies cord, that has dried and fallen off, then throwing it into the university where you think the child will go to Uni!

Must remember to do this! It's still lurking in a bag somewhere!

*Teacher's Day (Öğretmenler Günü)--teachers get all sorts of (worthwhile) gifts from students


*Making New Year's into Christmas (i.e. "New Year's" trees, Father "New Year's")

well, turks DO have dibs on Saint Nicholas, since his church was in Myra near Antalya --and he was buried there (until his bones were stolen)

(a fact I accidentally blurted out to cousins, not thinking that their little girls still believed in Santa. I effectively murdered him in their eyes...)

But it gets to be a bit ridiculous in the whole fake secularity of the thing. I was teaching EFL to grades K-4 this past holiday season, and the administration wanted me to teach them various holiday songs, including but not limited to "Silent Night," "O Holy Night," and "All Come All Ye Faithful." When I actually explained the meaning of these songs, they got quickly embarrassed and backed off.

It's also very amusing to hear "Jingle Bells" in July at chic Etiler and Ulus restaurants.